Chapter 37 Failed Draw

Although things were a little thorny during the representative selection, that didnt stop our class from putting in effort for the Cultural Festival.

We decided to create an exhibit.

Of course, there were opinions that said we should build a haunted house or a maid cafe, the Cultural Festival staples. But other classes had the same ideas, so we decided not to go with those. Having too many competitors wasnt exactly a good thing.

By the way, my opinion on the matter was to open a coffee shop. We gathered everyones ideas, wrote them on pieces of paper, then put them inside a box before drawing it like the previous lottery.

Of course, even though the odds were higher, my idea didnt get picked. I may have hit that 5% chance before, but not this time Curse you, desire sensor.

The boys were disappointed over the fact that they couldnt see Asanagi, Amami-san, or Nitta-san in a maid outfit, but it simply couldnt be helped. it was for the greater good.

Oi, you bunch of perverts! Stop sulking and work seriously! We need more ideas for our exhibit! How about this? If you put in more effort, well consider cosplaying during the Cultural Festival Im sure Yuu and Nina wouldnt mind, right?.

EH?? Just me and Ninacchi? What about you, Umi?

Im your producer, idol-sans. Ill be the one who will take you two to the height of popularity! Youre with me, right, Maehara-kun?

Uhh Dont involve me in this.

During our schools Cultural Festival, there was an event where visitors would be able to vote on which class they liked the most. The school gave awards to the classes who were in the top three. Personally speaking, the awards werent worth the effort. They would probably give us something like a box of ballpoint pens or the like anyway.

There was no need for us to spend that much effort on this. We only needed to do enough so that nothing major would happen on the D-day.

Anyway, they need to stop talking about cosplays or whatnot. We have to decide on the theme of our exhibit first.

Okay, firstly, lets discuss Maehara-kuns suggestion, mosaic art using empty cans.

Other than mine, there were various other suggestions such as creating a device based on something that was seen on TV, building a classroom-wide domino, and so on. But our budget was limited and the overall evaluation for the rank was mostly decided by how good it would look in front of the camera. In the end, they decided to go with my suggestion after considering all the limitations.

Because of that, I had to sketch the picture we would be making, but I could always ask mom for help, so I wasnt too worried. As for the materials like the empty cans, we could just ask for them from the nearby convenience stores or restaurants.

Asanagi and I would work on the blueprints while the rest of the class would set it up, following our instructions. That was the conclusion of todays discussion.

I-Im beat

Having finished my work for the day, I plopped down on my desk, exhausted.

I had steeled myself to work hard when it was decided that I would be the representative, but I hadnt expected that talking in front of people could exhaust me so. The meeting was led by Asanagi, and I was merely there to support her, but I still felt exhausted. Being a recluse made me this weak, huh?

Yo, good work.

Good work

Jeez, its the first meeting and youre already like this. You wont die during the real thing, right?

I want to say I wont, but I could see myself dying in the near future

Sure we didnt need to spend much of our budget on the mosaic art, but in turn, the workload was heavy.

I tried my best to make a schedule that wouldnt put too much of a burden on the class, however, we would be cutting it really close to the deadline, and that was worrying.

I had no experience and they suddenly told me to create a schedule for a big project like this. I can see myself getting burnt out in the future.

Man, Im thankful that youre my partner in this, Asanagi. If it was Nitta-san or any other girl, I dont know what would happen to me.

Because Asanagi was chosen as the girls representative, Amami-san and Nitta-san gave us their full cooperation from the beginning.

That was why I could barely hang in there.

Right? Thanks to my amazing luck youre able to rest easy Also, here, a gift.

Hm?

Asanagi handed me a crumpled piece of blank paper.

What is this?

My lottery draw.

Huh? She didnt actually hit the jackpot? Whats going on?

Asanagi, you

Sorry, Maehara, my draw was a bust. Sensei knew about it, but I had to force my way in, you see

Sensei probably kept quiet because the atmosphere at that time was bad. That was the reason why Asanagi forcefully volunteered like that, huh?

I thought it was a work of fate that we both hit the jackpot. But it turned out that reality doesnt work that way.

I cant believe you had the balls to do that in the middle of that mess Jeez, youre something else.

Are you angry at me, Maehara? Sorry, I lied to you

Eh, this just means that my luck is better than yours. Besides, no ones complaining about it, so all is well.

For the other girls, hitting the jackpot not only meant that they had to do a bunch of unnecessary work, they also had to deal with me as their partner, so Asanagi forcing her way in would be a form of salvation for them.

Theres no need for me to make a big deal out of it. In fact, I should be thankful to her since she went out of her way to take an L for me.

I wont be mad at you. If anything, Im glad that youre my partner.

I mean, overall, this situation was a win for me. I had no reason to complain.

Its Asanagis way of protecting someone dear to her. knowing that, theres no way I would be angry at her.

I see.

Mhm.

I see. Thank you, Maehara, I feel a little better now.

Really? Glad to hear that.

Mhm. Hehe ~

Asanagi smiled in relief.

I had to turn my gaze away. Why does she look so cute? Its unfair.

If only she showed this side of her more often, she would probably be more popular than Amami-san. Of course, I wouldnt say that to her face, she would get cocky if I did.

But anyway, Im glad that we decided it by lottery this time. If Sensei were to force the role to a random person instead, what would happen to me, I wonder?

Well, in that case, I could volunteer instead of whoever would be chosen. You see, Maehara, your existence is like a ticking time bomb in the eyes of the other classmates. It wont be long until theyre sick of you.

Ticking time bomb, really? Well, it isnt like I cant see where theyre coming from

I mean, I went and said that I hated them to their faces a while ago. Of course they would be very mindful of my presence.

If someone other than my friend, Asanagi, were to deal with me for a long time, its inevitable that they would be sick of me.

Well, whatever, that isnt important. Lets decide on what to draw quickly, Asanagi. Any ideas?

Yeah, I got one, what about you?

Me too.

Weve been hanging out often lately, so Im sure that both of us are on the same page.

Wanna say it together?

Sure

Here goes

That was the beginning of our cultural festival.